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When he played Jacques Ibert’s Concerto for Flute and Orchestra on Nov. 25, flutist Benjamin Morency was appearing at Montreal’s Maison symphonique for the second time, following an earlier stint with the National Youth Orchestra of Canada playing works by Bernstein. His inspirational playing garnered him first prize in the OSM Manulife Competition. And yet, he says, “My first year at Yale focussed mainly on orchestra and chamber music and I didn’t have much chance for solo recitals.”
Almost a year later, Morency has completed his Master’s at the Yale School of Music with Ransom Wilson. This follows studies with Marie-Andrée Benny at the Conservatoire de musique de Montréal. Morency would like his career to be versatile: whether soloist, chamber musician or orchestral musician, each discipline interests him and complements the others. “I need to be on stage sharing my music. Otherwise, what I do is meaningless.” We’ll soon have a chance to luxuriate in his playing when he appears as soloist in Mozart’s Flute Concerto No. 2 with the Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra.
This flutist from Saint-Esprit in the Lanaudière region likes both the Baroque repertoire, with its purity of phrasing, and contemporary music, which he explored while at the Conservatoire de Montréal and at Yale. But he excels above all in French music, of which he aspires to be a worthy representative. Like Jean-Pierre Rampal and Ransom Wilson, he seeks a style that is delicate, textured and sensitive, paying particular attention to the phrasing. Like Rampal, Wilson and Emmanuel Pahud, Morency plays a Haynes flute. Following his competition win, Morency was able to purchase a tube in 10-carat gold with silver keys, making for a nice balance of sharpness and warmth.
He loves colour and cites as his inspirations pianist Martha Argerich, oboist François Leleux and conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin, under whose baton he’ll soon be performing Mahler’s Ninth Symphony with the Orchestre Métropolitain at the Maison symphonique. Morency is also pursuing a diploma in orchestral excerpts at the Université de Montréal with Denis Bluteau. His aim is to perfect his playing so that one day he can join an orchestra. We wish him all the best!
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